Family posts $25K reward to find missing woman

A $25,000 reward is now being offered for information leading to the location of 27-year-old Danielle Jelinek, of Oakdale, who was last seen in south Chisago Lakes Township Dec. 9 of last year.

Danielle Jelinek

Chisago County Sheriff Rick Duncan confirmed the family has offered the reward. This in addition to Crime Stoppers offering a $1,000 reward in January.

The sheriff’s office initially got involved in the case Sunday, Dec. 9, when Jelinek’s family requested a welfare check at the Chisago Lake Township home belonging to 28-year-old Aaron Jude Schnagl.

Uncooperative during the check, Schnagl was later arrested for 5th degree drug possession when authorities returned with a search warrant. He was eventually jailed in Anoka County, as his possession arrest violated an existing probation order.

During the search, officers found bags containing about 12 pounds of marijuana and items including Jelinek’s purse, shoes and cell phone. Also discovered was her car, which was parked outside the residence.

Schnagl, though never charged in connection with Jelinek’s disappearance, remains a person of interest in the case.

Authorities followed up on leads and tips in the case before turning to area lakes in the continued search for Jelinek. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office dive team performed a search while conducting a training exercise on Bone Lake in northern Washington County. A similar effort followed on nearby Moody Lake.

Both lakes, located south of Chisago City, between Scandia and Forest Lake, are in close proximity to Jelinek’s last known whereabouts.

The diving exercises came after a number of authority-led ground searches that generated hundreds of volunteers who combed the snow-filled landscape in all directions surrounding the Schnagl residence in the 11200 block of 261st Street, just off Lofton Avenue.

The Chisago County Sheriff’s Office is asking for assistance from the public while continuing to interview people and search areas of interest that have been generated from information gathered in the ongoing investigation.

Anyone with tips or information relating to Jelinek’s disappearance is urged to call the Chisago County Sheriff’s Office at 651-257-4100.